


Poundtown, USA

by orphan_account



Series: Bucky & The Rookie [4]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: But we still love him, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Oh steeb, Reader Is a Good Bro, bucky is a paranoid idiot, he's a little ball of nerves, sorry - Freeform, there will be nothing explicit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-04
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-15 14:53:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29191101
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: You and Bucky help Steve and Lucy navigate theirfirst timetogether. Also, Bucky is trying to kill Steve. Again. (But he never means it, though)
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Reader, Steve Rogers/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Bucky & The Rookie [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2057070
Comments: 16
Kudos: 25





	1. Vanilla

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LucindaAM](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LucindaAM/gifts).



> Another one for Steve and Lucy! Once again, the lovely LucindaAM wanted to know how Bucky might protect you against the empty threats Steve had for you during the last installment, and what Lucinda wants, Lucinda gets, so I enveloped that request into this storyline. Hope you enjoy!!! Eeep!

Lucy narrowed her eyes at you skeptically. “And…he likes when you do that?”

You nodded assuredly. “Yeah, he goes crazy for it, actually. In my experience, most guys do,” you told her, crossing your arms over your chest.

“Huh. Okay, explain it to me again,” Lucy requested, picking up her pen again, poised to take more notes in the notebook she had.

“Alright, so you fold your tongue into a kind of taco shape and then you slide it around his--”

“Tacos? I could use some tacos right about now,” Bucky remarked as he strolled into the common area where you and Lucy were convened. Both of you jumped and scrambled to look natural, Lucy slamming her notebook shut and covering it with her arms, and you lying out on the couch in a decidedly unnatural pose.

“Heeeyyy, Buckaboo, what’s up?” You said in an overly casual tone. He paused as he opened the fridge, regarding you and Lucy with a quizzical look before ducking down to retrieve a beer.

“What are you guys up to?” he asked as he took a sip and walked over to you, an amused glint in his eyes as he spotted the notebook Lucy had. She held it tightly to her chest.

“Nothing, just, you know, girls being girls,” you said, swatting at him, hoping he would drop the subject.

Bucky squinted at you, and much to your chagrin, he turned his attention to Lucy. “Studying for something?” he pried further, nodding at the notebook. Bucky had an almost unnatural knack for spotting when something was out of the ordinary, and he usually stopped at nothing to figure it out. Whether it was because of his decades of spy training or because he was just so damn nosy, he always needed to know what was amiss.

“Mind your business, _James_ ,” Lucy said forcefully, glaring up at him.

“Oof, she used your government name. What’d you do this time, Buck?” Steve asked as he walked in, catching the tail end of the conversation.

Just as Steve was about to approach the couch, a mechanical whirring filled the room and in a dizzying flash, three of Nat’s widow bites launched themselves onto Steve’s person, sending hot electricity coursing through him and rendering him a convulsing heap on the ground.

“Geez, Bucky! I thought you got rid of all those traps weeks ago,” you exclaimed, joining Lucy as she rushed over to Steve. He seemed fine enough, despite his groaning and the fetal position he took on the ground. After the whole lake house hijinks, Steve had jokingly told you to sleep with one eye open. Unfortunately, his oldest friend had taken that threat a little too seriously, rigging different weapons to deploy around the compound if Steve came within a few feet of you. Out of all things, Bucky wasn’t very adept at catching hyperbole.

“I thought I got all of them,” Bucky said thoughtfully as he took another sip of beer. “Besides, it’s best to keep the punk on his toes. It’s the little ones you need to look out for.”

“I’m not little anymore,” Steve said through gritted teeth, peeling a widow bite off of his pec while Lucy got the other two.

“I was born first. You’ll always be the little one Stevie, don’t be fooled,” Bucky assured the other super-soldier with a smirk.

“Can you try not to kill my boyfriend, please?” Lucy said as she helped Steve back to his feet. “I’d like to keep him around for a bit longer.”

You could see Steve just about melt at being called Lucy’s ‘boyfriend’, looking down at her with a warmth he reserved only for her, placing a gentle kiss to the crown of her head. Lucy smiled up at him shyly, as if she still couldn’t believe he would do something like that. It made you melt a bit, too, seeing your best friend so happy. You had never seen Lucy in a relationship before; you hadn’t known her long enough for that, and you had expected it to be a lustful tornado, something that matched the outspoken and unapologetic woman you had come to know and love, but it wasn’t that, not quite yet. The two blondes were crazy about each other, but they were taking things slow, wanting to savor every bit of the newness of their budding relationship, every first they had with each other. So when Lucy had come to you for advice about taking things to the _next level_ with Steve, you were more than willing to share your expertise. That is, before Bucky unleashed his reign of terror.

“I’ll make sure not to break him too bad, Luc,” Bucky assured her with a wink, and she just rolled her eyes. “You ladies staying for a bit?”

“No, actually,” you said with a small pout, placing a light kiss on Bucky’s cheek. “We’ve got some drills to run through, and then there’s that get-together we promised we would go to.” Some of the other cadets had planned a party in the dorms, and you and Lucy were often ribbed for hanging out with the “A-squad” too much by your friends, so the two of you had assured the others you would be in attendance.

“Don’t have too much fun without us,” Steve said smirking down at his girlfriend.

“Wouldn’t dream of it, Cap,” Lucy said, giving him a heated gaze and biting her lip.

“Okay you two, we need to go,” you said playfully, pulling Lucy towards the door. “I’ll make sure to bring her back in one piece. Two at most,” you told Steve, and he laughed.

With that, you and Lucy left, leaving Steve and Bucky alone in the common area. Steve poised himself to rip Bucky a new one for the widow bites, but he stopped short when he saw Bucky pull a notebook from behind his back, flipping through a few pages.

“Too bad they forgot this,” Bucky murmured, not sounding particularly sorry about it.

“What is that?” Steve asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

“Lucy’s notebook,” Bucky replied simply, flipping through some more pages. “They were acting weird about it, and I want to know why.”

“Buck, that’s a major violation of privacy, put it down,” Steve said, reaching for the book, but Bucky twisted away from him, flipping through it some more.

“Relax, old sport, it doesn’t look like anything compromising,” he said, frowning down at the pages. “It just looks like notes from training. Firearm safety…lab safety…disarming explosives… _arming_ explosives. Huh, they were acting so secretive, I thought—oh. _Oh_ ,” Bucky said, his eyebrows raising.

Steve couldn’t help himself, despite the guilt that crept up his spine. He didn’t want to breach Lucy’s trust, but the look on his friend's face made him squirm. “What—what does it say?” he asked tentatively.

A slow grin spread over Bucky’s face and he looked up at Steve with a look that screamed trouble.

“Bucky, what does it say?” Steve asked again exasperatedly. He reached for the notebook and Bucky willingly handed it over, the shit-eating grin still on his face.

“Looks like you’re in for a treat real soon, pal,” was all the metal-armed assassin offered, and Steve just glared at him.

Steve scanned the open page, reading over Lucy’s neat cursive, and soon heat began to invade his entire body. His eyes roamed over the very colorful instructions she had transcribed, sweat beginning to bloom across his brow.

“This is very…detailed,” Steve remarked haltingly, feeling the need to tilt the notebook a little as if that would make it easier to digest.

Bucky laughed and took it back, closing it and setting it back on the table where it was left. He clapped Steve on the back. “This is a good thing, punk. She wants to spice things up a little, there’s nothing wrong with that.”

“Spice things up,” Steve repeated, his tone a mixture of confusion and intrigue.

“Yeah, I mean, no offense, but I always figured you were a bit vanilla in that department,” Bucky said, which was met by a glare. He raised his arms in surrender. “There’s nothing wrong with vanilla, vanilla is good! But sometimes a little kick is needed, ya know?” Bucky said, trying to reassure his friend.

“The thing is, there’s nothing to spice up,” Steve admitted, frowning down at his shoes.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, we haven’t…you know,” Steve said, rubbing the back of his neck and avoiding Bucky’s gaze. “Not yet.”

“Oooh,” Bucky nodded in understanding. “You haven’t been to Poundtown yet.”

Steve just looked at him.

“You know. The horizontal mambo.”

Nothing.

Bucky sighed. “Sex, Steven. You and Lucy haven’t had sex.”

Steve turned red again. “Right, yeah, no. We’re taking things slow, we agreed on that. I just didn’t think slow would come so soon.”

Bucky looked at Steve sympathetically. He knew how seriously Steve took these kinds of things, and he also knew how his friend could get lost in his head about them too. “Don’t worry about it, just talk to her. I’m sure she doesn’t want to speed things up too much. I mean, the only reason we even know she’s been thinking about this is because we stole her notebook.”

“You stole her notebook, you mean,” Steve said accusingly.

“Yeah, but you didn’t stop me, so you’re an accessory to the crime,” Bucky said smugly. He patted Steve on the back one last time. “Just talk to her about it,” he said over his shoulder as he left the room.

Steve sighed and looked at the offending notebook, its contents still reeling through his mind. Talk to her about it. Simple enough.

But since when did he have enough brain cells for taking the simple route?

______

Later that night, with too many thoughts still clambering around his noggin to focus on the book he was trying to read on his couch, Steve couldn’t shake how he was feeling. Bucky was right; Lucy hadn’t actually brought it up to him, but still, it was important enough for her to write it down, so how could he not obsess over it? To add insult to injury, Bucky’s “vanilla” comment was ringing loud and clear in his mind. Was he really too plain?

Lucy was anything but plain. She was vibrant and smart, and damn beautiful, and even though she didn’t have any experience with the horizontal mambo, she knew all the steps based on what was in that notebook. Steve wasn’t so sure he could live up to that.

“Captain,” Friday’s bright voice chimed, and Steve almost fell off of his couch from being pulled from his thoughts. “Cadet Truelove is on her way to your suite now.”

Steve’s heart sped up, and he had the passing thought that maybe he had the ability to conjure up his girlfriend with just his mind. Or maybe she could sense when he was thinking about her. Either way, Steve busied himself with straightening out the knicks and knacks on his coffee table and smoothing down his already impeccable hair. A soft knock sounded at his door, and he took a deep breath before opening it as casually as he could.

He was greeted by Lucy’s sly smile, but his eyes traveled down to the little black dress she was wearing, one that showed just enough but not nearly enough at the same time. Whatever greeting he had planned was lodged in his throat, and his heart was drumming for entirely different reasons now.

"Cat got your tongue, Cap?” she asked, not missing the way his eyes drank in her figure.

Steve swallowed hard. “Something like that,” he managed to say, dragging his gaze up to hers. “Didn’t you have that party to go to?”

Lucy shrugged. “Yeah, I did, but halfway there I realized I would rather be spending time with you. I didn’t bother changing though, I hope you don’t mind,” she said, a hint of suggestion in her voice. When Steve offered no reply, she shifted nervously, her expression turning sheepish. “I mean, I hope I’m not actually interrupting something--”

“No! Never, sweetheart, come in,” he said, stepping aside and letting her further into the suite. He couldn’t help but smile at the faint blush on her cheeks at the pet name he used for her. At first, she had made fun of it, but eventually, she folded and admitted she liked being his _sweetheart_.

“I was thinking we could just curl up and watch a movie or something? I’ll even let you pick out an old-timey one,” she said, wrapping her arms around his middle and looking up at him sweetly.

He rolled his eyes playfully and let his fingers glide through her hair. “I’ve got Ben & Jerry’s in the freezer, too.”

“Oooh, now you’re speaking my language,” Lucy said excitedly, lifting up on her toes and giving him a light kiss on his lips.

The two of them made their way to the couch, ice cream in hand, and they settled down to _Casablanca_ , an old-timey film that Steve couldn’t believe Lucy hadn’t seen.

“This is probably one of the greatest films ever made, how have you never watched it?” he asked incredulously as it started.

“Uh, because I wasn’t born before sliced bread was invented,” Lucy quipped back as she spooned some Hunka-Hulka Burnin’ Fudge into her mouth and settled back into his lap.

“Haha, so funny,” Steve deadpanned, leaving a pinch on her side that tickled more than it hurt, and she yelped gleefully at the contact.

For a while, they went on peacefully, Steve interjecting at some points to explain something about the movie, and Lucy holding back as many old man jokes as she could. It was comfortable, like an old sweater, and the worries that had plagued the super-soldier before seemed to melt away. Until Lucy groaned at a text message she got.

“Seriously,” she murmured as she typed furiously in response.

“What happened?” he asked, his voice low and authoritative, his eyebrows knitted together.

Lucy glanced up at him and laughed a little, placing her thumb over the worry lines on his forehead and gently smoothing them away. “At ease, soldier. It’s just Y/N. She and Bucky have taken claim to our room tonight, so I’ll be couch surfing, ugh.”

“Can’t they just use Bucky’s suite?” Steve asked, and she snorted.

“I don’t know, apparently there’s something inherently sexy about doing it in the dorms, something about breaking the rules, and sneaking around,” she sighed, rolling her eyes and typing out a few more things on her phone. “I’ll just go over to Miranda’s room, her roommate is pretty chill about me hanging out on the couch.”

“Or you could stay here,” Steve offered before his brain could fully process what his vocal cords were doing.

Lucy looked up at him in surprise, her own eyebrows raised and her lips slightly parted. Steve blanched and silently cursed himself. He knew, and she knew, what his offer implied, and all of the anxiety from before came crashing back down on him. The air was thickened by their silence, and Steve swore he could hear the gears turning in her head.

“Could I?” she asked, barely above a whisper. He didn’t miss the way her eyes landed on his lips before they met his again.

“Y-yeah, yes,” Steve stammered out, trying to keep as cool as possible. “If you want. I can take the couch.”

Lucy searched his face for a moment, a slow smile warming up her features. “Don’t be silly. We’re both adults, I think we can manage sharing a bed for one night…right?” Her tone was flirtatious and confident, but just under its surface was a slight tension of uncertainty, and Steve wondered if maybe the same worries that plagued him were plaguing her as well. It was strangely reassuring, and he could feel himself unwinding a bit.

“Right,” he said in agreement, and before he could doubt himself, he leaned forward and kissed her, slow and fervid, like a promise of what was certainly to come. When they pulled away from each other, he felt a rare surge of confidence at the way he left her breathless and slightly disheveled, biting her lip and gazing at him through her lashes.

“I think I’m ready for bed,” Lucy said, unable to hide the lust in her voice.

“Tired?” Steve asked with a smirk.

“Not one bit,” she answered, and the heat in her eyes made Steve’s stomach do flips.

They made their way to his room after that, and with each step the anticipation became an almost tangible thing in the air, dancing and teasing around the pair of them. Lucy decided to take a shower, and Steve lent her one of his shirts to sleep in, though he figured she wouldn’t need it for too long. He sat on his bed waiting for her, leaning back against the headboard and twiddling his thumbs, trying his best to gas himself up. 

_You can do this Rogers, don’t be a punk. You’re not vanilla, you’re a casanova! Captain-freaking-America! The star-spangled man with a plan and an ass that won’t quit!_

Soon, Lucy emerged from his bathroom, freshly clean with his t-shirt draping loosely around her frame, the hem of it just barely covering her thighs. She paused at the foot of his bed, her heart hammering against her ribcage as she took in Steve’s impressive figure, clad in nothing but a pair of black boxer briefs. He looked back at her with one of his annoyingly charming grins, the one that looked innocent and boyish but would leave just about anyone weak in the knees. She suddenly had no clue what to do, her feet rooted in place, nerves invading her like the Chitaurian army in NYC.

“I don’t bite, I promise,” he said lightly after a moment, catching her nervous energy.

She grinned back at him, his words setting her free from her paralysis, walking over to his side of the bed. “Well, that’s kind of disappointing to hear,” she purred, and he offered her a small chuckle that quickly caught in his throat as she climbed onto his lap. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pressed against him until their noses were touching, her eyes dark and inviting.

“You smell good,” Steve noted huskily, his breath tickling her cheek, alighting all her nerve endings.

“I just used your soap,” Lucy said, raising one of her eyebrows.

“Well, it smells better on you,” he insisted, his voice a deep timbre, heavy with want.

Not one to dance around this any longer, Lucy surged forward, claiming his lips against hers, and pouring every ounce of her own want into the way her mouth moved with his. Her heart was still racing, and part of her mind was still grappling with the fact that this was really happening. When Lucy had gone to you for advice, she hadn’t expected things with Steve to move along this quickly. She had just wanted to be prepared, to make sure that when the time came, she would be able to impress the man she was falling so hard for. At first, she had been terrified; deep down, the idea of actually sharing her body with someone else had always freaked her out to an extent, but with Steve she felt safe. She felt like she was at home in his arms, and she was more than ready to take this leap with him.

They became a tangle of lips and tongues and limbs, and Steve maneuvered them further onto the mattress with a deftness that left her breathlessly impressed. She sank back against the sheets as he gently shifted his weight on top of her, trailing kisses along her jawline and down her neck. His hand traveled down her side to the hem of his shirt, stalling there for a moment.

“Is this okay?” he asked, his words fanning over her collar bone.

“Yes,” she whispered, her eyes closing and her toes curling.

He resumed his ministrations, his lips traveling to her exposed shoulder, his hand dipping under his shirt and making its way up her torso. Lucy felt like she was on fire, like she was going to combust any second, like she would die if he continued touching her like this and die if he dared to stop. She reached her hands around him, her fingers dragging along the broad expanse of his back, reveling in the feel of his taut muscles under her touch.

“Oh, _Steve_ ,” she breathed out, those two syllables expressing her every desire and yearning.

Everything stopped then. Just stopped. She felt Steve’s body go rigid, a rush of cool air wafting over her as he pulled away. Her eyes blinked open and she was met with his face over hers, his eyebrows knitted together, his mouth set in a hard line. He stared down at her for a moment, his eyes volleying between both of hers, his blue eyes stormy and clouded with something she couldn’t place.

“We should go to sleep,” he said finally, and it took Lucy a moment for her brain to register what he said.

“What?”

“We should go to sleep,” he repeated, removing himself completely from her and settling on his back beside her, both of them looking up at the ceiling. “We both have an early start tomorrow,” he continued, sounding like he was trying to convince himself more than he was trying to convince her. “You have training in the morning, and Tony has had this team meeting on the calendar for a while. We should get a good night’s rest.”

Lucy blinked a few times, her mind still clouded with the rush of euphoria that came to an abrupt end. She felt his head turn towards her and she did the same. His expression was neutral, but there was something behind his eyes, almost like he was pleading with her. She nodded slowly.

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right, we should sleep,” she said, her voice wavering a bit.

The wrinkle between his brows softened a bit and he turned his head back toward the ceiling. “Yeah,” he echoed softly. They stayed that way for a bit, letting everything that was swirling around them settle back to earth.

“Friday, please turn out the lights,” Steve whispered after a while.

“Yes, sir,” the A.I. happily obliged.

And that was the end of that.


	2. You Are a Queen and I Am Your Fool

It was Saturday afternoon, and you and Bucky elected to spend a lazy day together, just basking in each other’s company. It never ceased to amaze you how comfortable you were with him, how well he fit into your life and how well you somehow fit into his. You were reclining on the couch in the common room reading your favorite book, while Bucky laid on top of you, his head resting against your stomach while you carded your fingers through his hair. You had the thought that this was how you could spend the rest of your life, stuck in this moment with the man you adored, but then your heart constricted.

Graduation.

You and Lucy only had two more semesters left of the training program, and then you’d both officially be agents for the Avengers Organization. But that didn’t mean you’d be on the same team as Bucky. You didn’t have a choice in where they’d send you on assignment, and the thought of being more than a few miles away from Bucky made your heart sink. You didn’t know where that would leave the two of you, if the connection you had with him could withstand what was inevitably going to happen.

As if sensing your inner turmoil, Bucky lifted his head and looked up at you, a sweet and sleepy smile on his face.

“You’re pretty,” he said simply, and the butterflies in your stomach did a synchronized flying routine.

“So are you,” you told him, and he chuckled, deep and rumbling, and you could feel it reverberate through your body. “Put your head back down, it’s a terrific book rest,” you ordered and he laughed again. He reached up for a quick kiss before snuggling back down on your stomach, grabbing your wrist and placing your hand back in his hair. The ache in your heart dulled a bit. You could think about the future later. Right now, you were right where you wanted to be, and that’s all that mattered to you.

Just then, Steve walked into the common area, a deep sigh sounding from his throat. He looked a little haggard and more unkempt than you were used to seeing him, and you frowned at him with concern.

“Everything okay, Steve?” you asked, and Bucky sat up to look at him too, concern etched on his face to match yours.

Steve sighed again. “Hey, Rookie. Yeah, everything’s okay. Well, no, everything’s not okay. I was kind of hoping to talk to Bu—AAAHHHHK!”

He was interrupted two large metal bands dislodging from hidden ports in the floor, one clamping around his arms and torso, the other clamping around his legs. By what seemed to be a magnetic force, the bands lifted Steve into the air and slammed him onto the ceiling, his downtrodden expression replaced by one brimming with rage.

“James. Buchanan. Barnes. Get me the hell down from here!” Steve roared, straining against the restraints to no avail.

You gave Bucky a look. “Bucky. Really?”

Bucky stared up at Steve, trying but failing to hide his amusement at seeing his friend suspended from ceiling. “Okay, seriously, that’s the last one, I promise. I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see this,” he said, a bit of laughter escaping his throat.

“Bucky,” you said again in warning, and he held his hands up in surrender.

“I’ll find the remote, don’t worry,” he insisted to you. He glanced up at Steve again and mustered up the most serious face he could. “Hang in there, Steve,” he said, and he collapsed into a fit of giggles at his own joke. You had to bite the inside of your cheek to keep from joining him. You didn’t want to knock the poor captain while he was already down. Bucky left the room to search for the remote release, and you looked up at Steve.

“Wanna talk about it?” you asked him innocently, and he could tell you already knew what was bothering him. Of course you did.

“What did she tell you?” Steve asked, deflating a little. It had been two days since the incident in his room, and while Lucy didn’t seem to be upset with him, there was an unmistakable tension between them that he hated.

“Nothing,” you said, and he looked surprised. “She’s acting weird, you’re acting weird, and she stayed over at your place the other day. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to guess what happened, but it’s really none of my business, Cap.”

“I’m an idiot,” Steve said quietly, letting his head hang limply from the ceiling.

“Just talk to her about it, Steve,” you said sympathetically. 

He gave you a rueful grin. “You know, that’s exactly what Bucky said.”

“Well, it’s a widely known fact that you and Bucky have been sharing the same brain cell since 1937, and Bucky has been hogging it lately,” you said with a smirk. Steve looked like he was about to respond to that, but Bucky came back into the room scratching his head.

“I know I put that remote somewhere,” Bucky muttered, going over to the couch and lifting the cushions.

It was your turn to sigh. “Or maybe Thor is borrowing it…” you mused as you watched your boyfriend search around the room. He finally stood and made his way back to Steve, putting his hand on his hips.

“Sorry, pal, I don’t know where the remote is,” Bucky said helplessly. “But what’s got ya down, bud?”

“Bucky! Get me down!” Steve shouted, and if looks could kill, you’d be a widow by now. Or whatever the girlfriend equivalent of a widow was.

“They’re on a timer, so they’re gonna release you eventually, we just have to wait a while now,” Bucky said dismissively, heading to the kitchen cupboard to grab a snack.

“How long is a while?” Steve asked through gritted teeth. 

“Five hours, give or take,” Bucky said, popping an almond into his mouth.

Pure fury flashed across Steve’s face before he closed his eyes and began to mutter to himself calmly. You weren’t sure, but you could have sworn you heard him repeat _murder is a felony, murder is a felony, murder is a felony_ under his breath.

You bit your lip to avoid laughing again and you grabbed your book from the couch. “Okay fellas, I’m going to head out and let you two deal with…” you gestured vaguely between the two of them, “…all this.” You pressed a kiss to Bucky’s cheek and he smiled at you.

“Love you, Doll,” he said, pulling you back towards him and stealing another kiss from you.

You smiled back at him, pushing away the thoughts of graduation that had bothered you before. “Love you too, Buckaboo.”

You left, and Bucky peered up at Steve again, lying down on the ground below him so he wouldn’t have to strain his neck while he talked.

“You want to tell me what happened?” Bucky said, folding his arms behind his head.

“I want to get down,” Steve said plainly, the last of his anger subsiding into feeling sorry for himself.

“Might as well start talking, or it’s gonna be a long five hours,” Bucky said, popping a few more almonds into his mouth. “C’mon, what’s eating at you?”

Mentally, Steve ran a hand through his hair. He decided to just come out with it. After all, Bucky was his oldest friend, and he never was good at keeping things from him. “The other day, Lucy and I almost…went to Poundtown, but I couldn’t do it,” he admitted, avoiding Bucky’s gaze.

Bucky frowned a little. “Oh. Okay, wow, I mean I thought the serum took care of issues like that, but you know, it’s not uncommon. One out of five men--”

“No, not like that,” Steve interjected, his face tinging pink. “I mean, I could have done it, but I didn’t. I—I chickened out.” He let out a long breath and Bucky waited patiently for him to continue. “I just—she means so much to me, and I don’t want to disappoint her. I mean, you’re probably right, I am vanilla--”

“Damnit, Steve,” Bucky groaned, sliding a hand over his face. “You were still hung up on that? Listen, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that,” he said, pausing to consider his next words carefully. “I didn’t say that to imply you’d be disappointing. Lucy freaking adores you, pal, I don’t think you could ever disappoint her. I just meant that you’re so… _good_ and by the book all the time, but it’s okay to let your freak flag fly sometimes, especially with someone you care about.”

“That’s kind of what I wanted to talk to you about,” Steve said, glancing shyly down at Bucky. “I, um, I wanted to get your advice. Maybe some tips? Based on what I’ve been subjected to in the past,” he said, a slight glare returning, “you keep Rookie pretty happy.”

Bucky chuckled a little. A few weeks into his relationship with you, Steve learned pretty quickly that his room and Bucky’s room shared a ventilation system. To normal ears, the sound wouldn’t have traveled, but for a super-soldier with hearing like Steve’s, it wasn’t difficult for him to hear just how many different ways you could scream out Bucky’s name through the vents. Thankfully a well-placed bookshelf had fixed that problem.

“I’d be happy to help you out, punk,” Bucky said. He raised an eyebrow. “But, you’ve done this before, haven’t you? Didn’t you and Sharon…?”

“Yeah, but that was a while ago, and I want to be fresh,” Steve said, his blush from before deepening. “Are you gonna laugh at me?”

“Never,” Bucky said, his expression growing determined and protective. “You’re my best friend, Steve. I’ll always help you out, no questions, no judgment,” he said firmly.

Steve’s face softened into a grateful smile, and he was about to thank Bucky when a loud beeping sound emitted from the metal bands around him, and before he could fully register what was happening, they released him from their grasp and he fell from the ceiling hard and fast, right on top of Bucky.

“That was really sweet boys,” Nat said by the door, remote in hand, a mischievous smirk on her face as she watched both men groan in pain on the floor from their forced collision. “I almost shed a tear. Almost.”

“Romanoff,” Bucky growled, rubbing his forehead in the spot where Steve’s head slammed into it. “How’d you get your hands on that?”

She shrugged. “I have my ways. Touch my bites again, and something worse will be waiting for you, Barnes,” Nat warned ominously, and Bucky gulped down the fear that rose in his throat. She tossed the remote onto the kitchen counter and helped both guys off the ground. “And, I think I can help you out with your little problem, too Steve,” she said, her tone a bit too chipper.

“Uh, I don’t think that’ll be necessary Nat,” Steve said sheepishly, embarrassed that she had heard that whole conversation.

“If you’re having lady problems, wouldn’t it make sense to get advice from an actual _lady_?” Nat asked rhetorically, gesturing to herself and her lady-ness.

Bucky tilted his head thoughtfully and looked over at Steve. “She’s not wrong…”

“Great, come on,” Nat said, not waiting for Steve’s response. She rummaged around until she found a legal pad and a pen, handing both to Steve and directing him to sit on the couch. She stood in front of him, and Bucky joined her, his skeptical expression matching Steve’s. “Class is in session, boys, so pay attention,” she declared, grabbing a chair and sitting on it backward.

Thus started an hour-long, explicitly detailed lecture that left Steve red like a tomato. He was sure it would be a while before he could make eye contact with either of his friends again, and he learned more about his two friends than he ever wanted to know. He was probably scarred for life.

“Any questions, pal?” Bucky asked, folding his arms across his chest.

Steve let out a small huff of air. “Several, actually.”

“Let’s hear them,” Nat said, resting her chin on the back of her chair.

“Okay,” Steve said, scanning the pages of notes he had. “So for number nine, do I go clockwise or counterclockwise?” he asked carefully.

“Either, you’ll be able to tell what she likes, trust me,” Bucky said confidently.

“Right, okay. And number twenty-seven. Are you sure that won’t hurt?” Steve directed at Nat.

“Of course it’s gonna hurt. But in a good way, she’ll love it,” Nat said nonchalantly.

Steve wasn’t so sure about that. As much as he appreciated their help, he just didn’t feel like their, erm, _preferences_ , matched his own. He looked down at the list in his hands and thought back to what was in Lucy’s notebook. There had been some pretty wild-sounding things in there too, from what he remembered, so maybe Bucky and Nat knew what they were talking about. Maybe he just had to break out of his vanilla mindset.

“Oh! I almost forgot,” Bucky said, perking up. “Don’t be afraid to rip her clothes off. Literally.”

Nat gasped and nodded enthusiastically. “I agree, really show her your wild side, Steve. Pull her hair, too.”

Steve looked at them both skeptically. “That seems extreme…”

“Chicks dig it, especially nowadays,” Bucky assured him, and Nat nodded along in agreement. “Stevie, if you listen to us, you and Lucy will be in Poun--”

“That’s another thing,” Nat interjected, pinching the bridge of her nose. “If either of you say _poundtown_ one more time, I will give you both swirlies, like the nerds that you are.”

Bucky scoffed at her. “Isn’t that what the cool kids are calling it these days?”

Nat stared at him blankly. “How is Rookie still with you?” was all she had to say to him.

“I have another question,” Steve said, and they both turned their attention back to him. “About number thirteen. What does the ‘G’ stand for--”

“Hey,” a voice said behind them, and they looked up to see Lucy hesitating by the doorway. The three of them scrambled to get rid of the evidence of their conversation, Nat trying to discreetly stuff some of Steve’s notes between the couch cushions, and Bucky not-so-discreetly stuffing some into his mouth. When Steve and Nat looked over at him incredulously, he shrugged innocently and spat the damp pages out.

“I panicked,” he hissed at them, before turning to Lucy. “Hey, Luc, what brings you here? Ha, that’s a stupid question, of course you’re here to see Steve, haha, since he’s your lover—I mean, boyfriend, hahaha. We were just hanging out, nothing weird or anything, okay see ya later, come on Romanoff,” Bucky said, grabbing Nat’s arm and pulling her out of the room.

“How are you a spy?” Nat said to Bucky, shaking her head and rolling her eyes as she let herself be pulled away, the sound of their bickering fading down the hall.

Lucy chuckled a little as she watched them go before turning back to Steve. She stood there for a moment, taking him in, and he reached for something to say, but he came up short. Besides a few text messages, they hadn’t spoken much since the incident, and Steve found that his mouth was horribly dry.

“Lucy,” Steve began, looking down at his hands, trying to put into words everything he was feeling.

“Do you want to go out on the water with me?” Lucy asked suddenly.

Steve looked up, mild surprise on his face at the suggestion that seemed to come out of nowhere. He searched her face, looking for anything resembling resentment or disgust, but all he saw was her genuine and sweet smile. She stepped forward, standing in between his knees and running both hands through his hair.

“We can borrow a boat, and you can row while I sketch you,” Lucy continued, cradling his face in her palm and tracing his jawline with her thumb. He leaned into the touch, though it felt undeserved, and smiled up at her.

“You want to sketch me?” he asked cheekily, running his own hands over her waist and hips.

“It’s only fair, Cap. You got to sketch me, I just want to return the favor,” she said, her grin growing wider. She hesitated before leaning down until her lips were just above his, hovering there, waiting for him to close the distance, to break down the barrier that had been between them for the past couple of days. He did, drawing her in closer and putting his lips lightly over hers, feeling her relax under his touch, his own tension seeping out of him with every breath they shared.

The rowboats weren’t hard to find, and they made it out onto the river just as the sun began its descent from its noon-time high. Steve rowed them out into the middle of the water, eventually letting the calm current pull them along at a lazy pace. Just as she promised, Lucy pulled out her sketchbook and pencils, urging Steve to sit still while she worked.

“You’re such a bad model, hold still,” Lucy said, laughing a little as she adjusted his chin to how she wanted. He laughed too, grasping her hand and placing several little kisses in her palm and down her wrist.

“Make sure you get my good side,” he quipped, trying his best to hold the pose she put him in.

“All of your sides are good,” she said quietly, looking over his chiseled jaw, the slope of his nose, the curve of his neck. She had to look away after a moment, feeling slightly overwhelmed, the sting of his rejection the other night coming back and piercing her chest. She sighed, her pencil frozen over the page, and she forced herself to look up at him again.

“Was it me? Was it something I did, or didn’t do?” she asked, hating how timid she sounded. She wasn’t used to feeling this way, like she needed approval or validation from someone else. As much as she fought it, as much as she tried not to let it happen, Steve held her in the palm of his hand, and part of her was waiting for him to close his fist and let her crumble beyond repair, beyond all recognition.

“Lucy, sweetheart, no,” Steve said, his heart fracturing a little at the hurt in her tone, even more so at the fact that he was the one who put it there. He gingerly took the pencil and sketch book out of her hands, placing them on the floor of the boat and taking both her hands in his. “It was me, it was entirely me. I…you’re probably gonna punch me in the face for this, but, I saw your notebook the other day. I saw what you and Rookie were talking about, and it freaked me out,” he finally confessed, wincing at his own buffoonery.

Lucy’s eyes widened. “You saw that?” she squeaked, heat creeping up her neck.

“Yeah, and as much as I’d like to blame it all on Bucky, I didn’t have to look at it. But I did, and then when the time came, I didn’t think I could give you what you wanted. I thought I’d be too…too vanilla.”

She squinted at him. “Vanilla?”

“You know, boring. Plain. That’s actually what you walked into today,” he said sheepishly, reaching back and pulling a crumpled piece of paper out of his back pocket. He handed it to her, and she scanned it, her eyebrows meeting her hairline. “Nat and Bucky were giving me some tips. I just wanted to impress you, Luc,” he said, averting his gaze and looking back towards the compound across the water. He heard what sounded like a chuckle come from her, and looked at her again to see her covering her mouth, her eyes swimming with mirth. Another chuckle escaped, and another, and soon her whole body was shaking with loud, unadulterated laughter. He couldn’t help but join her, seeing just how ridiculous this whole situation had been.

Lucy took a few deep breaths, attempting to compose herself again. She looked over the page and shook her head. “First of all, I am way too broke for you to be tearing up all of my clothing,” she said, and they both laughed some more. She reached over and grabbed Steve’s hand again, making sure to look him in the eye. “Secondly, I think our big mistake here was going to our friends with this instead of talking to each other.”

“I can’t argue with that,” Steve agreed, interweaving his fingers between hers.

“You know, vanilla is my favorite flavor of ice cream, has been since I was little,” Lucy said coquettishly, her lips stretching into a sly grin.

“Is that so?” Steve said, leaning forward and grinning back at her.

She nodded. “Especially French vanilla, with those little flecks of vanilla bean. The best.”

Steve just looked at her for a moment, wondering how on earth he got so lucky to be sitting here with her. “ _Tu es une reine et je suis ton imbécile_ ,” he said softly, playing with the ends of her hair.

“I’m gonna need you to speak French more often, Cap,” Lucy said, a familiar heat glazing over her irises. She looked down at the piece of paper still in her hand, and held it up, cocking an eyebrow at Steve. “May I?” she asked, and when he nodded, she tore it in half, tossing it out of the boat, and they watched as it dissolved and floated away, out of their reach and out of their cares. She turned back to him and kissed him, and she had the passing thought that if this was plain and vanilla, she didn’t want anything else.

Steve pulled back first, looking up at the orange-tinged sky, the last of the sun’s rays disappearing behind the line of trees that framed the Hudson shoreline. “I think I’m ready for bed,” he said, sliding his hands from her waist to her hips, his thumbs tracing circles against her.

“Tired?” Lucy asked, biting her bottom lip and letting her gaze linger on his.

Steve shook his head slowly, his eyes darkening and his grip tightening ever so slightly.

“Not one bit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not condone littering into any body of water, I just wanted to be dramatic, lolll.  
> I hope you like this! I always struggle with where to end things, but I think this is nice????  
> As always, if you have any suggestions for this series, drop 'em in the comments! :)


End file.
